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NewsNow: Pottsville native to be bishop of Harrisburg

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Pope Francis has appointed a former priest of the Diocese of Allentown as the next bishop of Harrisburg.

He is the Most Rev. Ronald W. Gainer, who for the last 11 years has been the bishop of Lexington, Ky.

Bishop Gainer, 66, was born and raised in Pottsville. He was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Allentown in 1973.

During his 30 years as a priest of the diocese, he was an assistant pastor at the former St. Bernard's Church in Easton and St. Catharine of Siena Church in Reading and a campus minister at Lafayette College in Easton and at Kutztown University and Albright College in Reading.

He also served as the judicial vicar of the diocese, pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Whitehall and the first secretary of Catholic life and evangelization in the diocese.

Allentown Bishop John Barres issued the following statement: "On behalf of the priests and people of the Diocese of Allentown, I welcome Bishop Gainer back to his home state. This native son of Pottsville is a fine bishop, canonist and a very pastoral man with deep experience in evangelization. I look forward to working with Bishop Gainer and extend to him the best wishes and prayerful support of the faithful of the Diocese of Allentown where his vocation was nurtured and first bore fruit."

The Diocese of Harrisburg consists of 15 counties in central Pennsylvania, including the Berwick and Bloomsburg areas, with a Catholic population of almost 240,000 people.

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